Kendall Clark: AlphaSmart Neo's interesting for what it's _not_

I keep hearing rumblings about the AlphaSmart Neo, but haven’t put my hands to one yet. Anybody out there got one? Tried one? Seems a bit steep at $250, but I’d love to play with one (<accent belle=“southern”>Why, I declare: I do believe I’ve dropped my kerchief: AlphaSmart, would you be so kind…?</accent>).

I am so over hardware, and I have been for more than a decade. I take pride in making my living from technology and doing so with very old, even decrepit hardware….

Oddly enough, the Neo is basically a computer for school children. It’s stunningly stupid and, well, primitive. I’m enjoying it so much, and being so productive with it, that it’s got me thinking about what I’ll call Primitive Computing and Power User Devolution.

The Neo is interesting not because of what it does or what features it has, but what it can’t do and the features it’s missing. It’s all about one thing and one thing only: writing. I’m most comfortable turning any task into a writing task (when all you have is a hammer…), which means I’m super comfortable with a primitive device that’s really only good for writing.

I bought an AlphaSmart 3000 a couple months ago off of eBay, and replaced the keyboard with a newer one from the company (easy as pie to do it, too).

I love the thing. I've sat around watching TV and writing. I've taken it on airplanes and written whatever (stories, journal entries, etc.). When I get back to the computer, I dump them into a text file.

With writing, having a lack of distractions is wonderful. I can write outside, upstairs, wherever, and I didn't have to buy a laptop, or have the "I'll just check my email" problem you get with a laptop. It justs makes writing fun.

I do some editing on them, but mostly I just write, and edit later on the computer, where I have a mouse.

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